


Three Jobs, Two Siblings, and a City of Monsters

by orphan_account



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Also lots of flirting?, Angst, F/F, F/M, Gender-Neutral Frisk, I just realized people might think actual butts when I'm talking about buttheads, I'm Sorry, Like no-fucking-swearing kids, M/M, Oh and yeah there are big butts here, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pacifist Timeline?, Swearing, Teasing Flirting~, Teenagers, Uh Also Other Abuse, Warning: General Badass, how to tag?, just a warning, just kidding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-08
Updated: 2017-08-13
Packaged: 2018-07-13 01:13:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7132085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(In which the author is a terrible summarizer).</p><p>"I never expected to get hired at my second job, just like I never expected to save a pair of kids from getting beat to death within the same day. I certainly wasn't expecting not just one, but BOTH of my precious siblings to fall in love within their first year of high school, and I definitely didn't assume I'd get involved with one of the most energetic (yet also lazy) group of monsters I'd ever meet. So what happens when life's assholes try to make their claim on mine? I might pick up a knife and give them my best badass impression, but in the end I'd probably have to rely on people who usually don't follow through..."</p><p>"And this is the story of when, for once, I had a group of friends who proved to me that not everybody goes back on their word. This is the story of when I was saved, and yet also destroyed during the process.</p><p>This is the story of how I was reborn."</p><p> </p><p>ACT 1: "Well, it all started with waffles..."<br/>(Chapters 1-???)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Days

**Author's Note:**

> Hoo-boy, this'll be a lotta fun. My first fanfiction for this fandom, and I'm probably way more stressed out about this first chapter than I should be! (>.

"Gem! Juno! Get your lazy butts down here for breakfast, or it's all gonna be mine!"

My voice rang out through the mostly empty house, and I paused my stirring hands for barely three seconds, listening for the usual thumping of those two waking up before getting back to something that can mean life or death in this house.

Waffles.

Now, while everybody loves home-cooked meals, nothing can beat the taste of store-bought waffle mix, fluffed and buttered after being baked in the old cast-iron waffle cooker we found at a yard sale a few months back.

But, unfortunately for me, I already had my daily dose of caffeine, and my mostly-empty stomach wasn't pleased with the idea of food at the moment, even  _ if _ it was waffles. I frowned as I placed two waffles on each of the plates, buttering them and making sure everything was turned off before heading towards the suspiciously-large table in the dining room, which connected to the kitchen via a small open space between the two areas.

No, seriously, this table was one of those large, over-sized wooden ones that most large families own...and by large I mean I could easily seat twenty people in one go. Sure, there was only three of us living here--but it was free, and didn't clash with the eggshell-colored walls of our home.

Right as I set the plates down, though, I suddenly was nearly knocked to the ground by my younger sister. Sighing, I wrapped my arms around her, still enjoying this moment that happens almost every morning, every day, every week-

"Huh...I smell waffles!" Annnd said moment's gone now, the cotton candy pink mop of Juno's hair brushing my face as she rushed to the table, already drowning her waffle in syrup. Smiling, I turned my attention to Gem, who wasn't as much as a morning person compared to our sister.

"Mmmmmorning?"

A yawn escaped his mouth, and I smiled even brighter at him. "Morning sleepyhead... coffee?" Nodding, he slumped to the table--beginning to eat while I brought him a familiar mug of coffee, just the way he liked it. Waiting until he took a sip, I gave him no time to react before unleashing a battle cry, plopping myself onto his lap and running my hand through his soft, faded locks of pure sunset.

"Aww, really Oct? I just woke up!" I laughed, "But Gem, your locks are  _ sooooo  _ soft, if I was a bird I would make a nest out of them-"

"-and never leave, we  _ know _ Oct." 

****

Ah, so  _ now _ my sister wanted to try and step up to the big leagues? I smirked, the perfect comeback making its appearance, "Well at least now I know that  _ one _ of you is ready for high school." A consensus groan from the other two satisfied my need to be a smartass for the day. 

****

"Oct, there's still  _ TWO WHOLE WEEKS  _ of break left. That's fourteen days! Three hundred and thirty-six hours! Twenty-thousand one-hundred and sixteen minu-"

"Alright smarty, we get it." Juno looked at me, a look in her eyes telling me that she just figured something out...though what it is I don't even-

"Yeah sis, we're excited just as much as you are for your job interview in a hour."

****

_ 3. _

_ 2. _

_ 1. _

****

"GOOOOOODAMNITTTT!" I practically flung myself out of the room, almost tripping over my own feet as I ran into my own room, the sound of my sister's cackling furthermore spurring me into a blind panic. Changing out of my frog pajama shorts and a crop top (that was not only comfortable, but also had a matching frog face on it, mind you) I put on my nice button-up, accessorizing the white top with a black vest and matching slacks. Grabbing my shoes-- a pair of three-inch heels that are needed in order for my pants to not swamp my feet-- I quickly rushed into the bathroom, grabbing various things and doing a once over of my own reflection.

A pair of dark golden hues stared back at me, my baby blonde hair making it's presence everywhere. Quickly sweeping 'the beast' out of my face, I grabbed my makeup and applied foundation to my pale complexion, making sure to cover the dark circles underneath my eyes.

My emergency bathroom scramble was interrupted just as I finished applying a shimmery transparent eyeshadow to my eyelids, the double tap rhythm letting me know Gem was on the other side of the door. 

****

"Yo sis', you going to let me do your hair before you screw it up, or are you gonna leave it down today?" 

****

Opening the door, I looked up into my bro's eyes, facial expression just  _ screaming _ at him to get in here and do his magic. Chuckling, he let himself in, not bothering to ask what I wanted before getting to work.

I closed my eyes as he brushed my hair, the feeling of his hands on my scalp soothing my skyrocketing nerves. I don't know why, but it always makes me feel better whenever he does this. Almost like he could brush away all my worries along with the tangles (plus I look ten times more fabulous than when I do it myself-- but pshhh, like I'll ever admit that to him.)

****

Barely ten minutes later, and now I can state I was looking like I prepared for today-- the makeup doing it's job to make me look like I actually slept last night, and 'the beast' professionally twisted back into a neat little updo, tamed into submission by none other than my own brother's hands. 

****

Speaking of which, I practically squeezed the life out of my savior, only to hit him on the shoulder as he squatted down to match my height. "Heh, geez sis' , there's no need for such a... _ short _ temper-"

_ Smack! _

"Don't be an ass." 

****

God, if I had a quarter for every time each of these two made some joke about my wonderful height of 5'0, I'd be filthy rich. 

****

_ RICH _ , I SAY!

Making my way out into the dining room once again, I began to speak. "You guys make sure to call me if you need anything, alright?"

A synchronized 'okay' came from the duo as I continued. 

****

"I mean it, call me. And I'm sure you guys know not to let strangers in, so I'm not even going to go there today. Oh, and make sure to lock the door behind--"

"WE KNOW, JUST GO!"

And with that said, I was running out the door like my life depended on it, heels in my hands, my bare feet pattering across the cool sidewalk. Entering the address of the place into my phone, I predicted that I'd be there right on time, so long as I kept running.

 

Note to self, never trust the phone GPS to find the shortest route!

After following and listening to Google Maps screw up  _ multiple _ times, I finally made it to the small bar and diner I was looking for. Running - wait no,  _ walking _ in like the professional I am, I was surprised to find the place heated like a furnace. I'm sure my face was already red from running, so maybe it was just the energy from running talking, but at least I'm pretty sure I made it in time-

_ SHIT. _

 

Looking at the clock, I saw that I was ten minutes late. Oh god, this isn't good, this isn't how you're supposed to make a great first impression on a job interview. Embarrassment seeping into my bones, I made my way to the counter, nervously tapping one hand in triplets on my side whilst the other held the small bag I kept my personal belongings in.

"Hello, I'm here for a job...interview?"

To say I was mildly surprised to be approached by a flame in a similar outfit as mine...well, that'd probably be an understatement, as I couldn't really contain the sudden outburst. 

 

"Whoa, you're a flame! In a bar? And our outfits even match?" Suddenly, I clamped my mouth shut, the blood rushing up to my face as I looked up. It was bad enough that I was late, but now I sounded like a kid getting their favorite thing in the world.

 

Geez, talk about embarrassing.

 

He (or at least, I'm assuming it's a man, with the outfit and everything) was at least a foot and a half taller than myself, his flames reminding me of Gem's hair, except more vibrant and with hints of yellow near the center.

 

"I-I mean," Quickly, I stuck out my hand, nerves getting the best of me, "Sorry for being late, I'm Octavia Song. Don't mind " The fire-man looked-- well, more like his glasses were facing me, that counts as looking...I think-- before a crackling sound could be heard throughout the small dining space, getting a few customers' attention. It took me a second to realize that he must be laughing at me.

 

I only wished that there was a hole in which I could throw myself down right now.

 

My hand was met with a nice, comforting heat-- like that of a fireplace... no, it was tamer than that, more diffused as the heat spread across my hand evenly. Before I could wrap my head around the fact his hand was made of flames that somehow formed a solid shape, it was gone, instead a rough, wispy voice filling the air.

 

"Don't worry about it, I'm sure you didn't mean anything by it. On the matter of the job, do you have any prior experience with waiting?" Nodding, I quickly took out my job resume and handed them to him as I explained my past history.

 

"I'm a part-time waitress at The Hat, been working there for - what - three years now, I think? Anyhow, I do a whole bunch of odd jobs, mostly serving and dishes though." He hands back my papers as I finish, and I place them back into the bag, looking back up to find the sunset suddenly in my face, my own surprise reflecting back at me in a pair of clones shining off of the glasses.

 

"And I take it that this is a  _ human _ establishment?" Subconsciously, I felt a shiver crawl down my back, red flags coming up at the back of my mind as I stared directly into the glasses. I should've known that this topic would come up eventually...just not like this. But, at least we're getting it out of the way now, rather than awkwardly assuming...right?

 

"Yes, it's owned by humans--"

 

"And I hope you are alright with serving customers that...  _ aren't _ so human?"

 

The tone would make anybody flinch away, but apparently not me. Nope, instead I looked straight at him, eyes full of wonder at the much more violent shade of orange he morphed into. It wasn't anything  _ super  _ noticeable, but there was just this overall darker glow that emitted from it, almost as if warning people of underlying motivations.

Though, that's not necessarily the most worrying part of this situation.

No, what's worrying about this situation is that I'm utterly calm, a coolness wrapping around my nervousness like a shock blanket covers a victim. I clearly know that the man in front of me was questioning my opinions on monsters, and that my own answer could very well set his opinion and decision of myself in stone. That fact alone should scare me, but all I could really do was smile at the flame. 

 

...Well, it's not like this is out of the ordinary for me anyway--but nonetheless, it's fairly unnerving.

 

"I won't lie, I don't have much experience with serving people like you, but that doesn't mean I think I'm better then them. After all, a living being is...just that - a living being, nothing more and nothing less." I point to myself, then flip my hand so that it's pointing to him.

"I'm alive? You're alive? Then does it really matter what we look like?" 

 

Again, before he could reply, I removed my pointing fingers, suddenly realizing what I'm saying, and that calmness turning back into my usual nerves as I began to dig my own grave.

 

"Of course, I'm not saying that you look weird! I think you look super cool! Oh god, I'm sorry, that's not professional of me to say, is it? Gah, I uh, just meant that in a totally un-offending way, totally platonic--but uh, not that I'm trying to be  _ too  _ friendly with my boss already, that is--!"

"Miss Song."

I stopped my babbling, turning my attention back to the man in front of me.  _ Good job Oct, way to blow your interview, you probably came off as some hypocrite monster supporter wannabe- _

"Can you start tomorrow?"

..............................................................................................

 

For about an hour, we talked about my work schedule, deciding that I'd work the late, almost graveyard shifts for most of the actual week, the weekends graciously being spared after he learned I lived with siblings. All of a sudden, my phone went off, Willow Smith filling the room with the sound of her voice.

 

_ "I whip my hair back and forth _

_ I whip my hair back and forth (just whip it) _

_ I whip my hair back and-" _

 

Speak of the devil.

"Ah, speaking of which, that's my younger sister. Sorry, Iâ€™ll just take this real quick."

I unlocked the call, whipping the phone up to my ear. 

 

"Juno? Is something wrong?"

"Well, not to interrupt or anything, but-" 

"-You're  _ not  _ interrupting, Cotton Candy." 

 

Gem's voice cut through Juno's, and I rolled my eyes. Well, at least they aren't fighting over something stupid, if the term of affection is anything to go by.

 

"Glad to hear you're finally awake now, bro." I stole a glance at the clock, eyes widening at how fast time passed. "Wait a second - do you guys have enough food for lunch?" 

 

I cursed myself for not buying the usual amount of groceries on Sunday, but in my defense, the budget this week was definitely tighter than the usual. Thank goodness for the fact that we only have to deal with this for one more day.

 

"No, that's why we called. When are you coming back?"

 

I looked at Grillby, who shook his head, before waving me away. Either the fire-man has the perception of a god, or he's just uncannily good with timing. Giving a small wave and a grateful smile to him, I walked out of the diner. One fist-pump later, and I was already walking on cloud nine. Well, not really, but close enough.

 

"You know what Gem? Grab a twenty and order some pizza, whatever toppings you guys want. I have a few errands to run still, so I'll just come back home to pay the pizza man and change real quick." 

 

A chorus of cheers brought a smile to my face, making me ignore the fact that I'll have to go without lunch today to make up for the now-missing twenty...again. God, being an adult sucks. Though, it's not like I eat anyways, so at least Gem and Juno can have a treat before school starts.

Hanging up, I took off the deathtraps attached to my feet, sighing in relief as I began walking back home barefoot. On my way back, I crossed the narrow bridge that everybody now acknowledged as The Border: an invisible line that separates the nice side of town from - well, the not-so-nice part. Reaching the other side, a sudden cry caused me to jump. Now, usually I think nothing about it, after all gang activity has  _ always  _ been a thing, even before the monsters joined the rest of society. It's most likely just some poor guy getting beaten over an unpaid debt...

... Or at least, that's what I'd usually think, if it was the sound of an adult. But that wasn't what I heard, the voice was too high-pitched to belong to an adult, not to mention that most of these type of things happened at night. Worry filling me when I realized that the yell came from a child, I began to run towards the source of the noise.    
  


Tracking it to the edge of an alleyway, I paused to catch my breath and assess the situation.

A kid, who seemed to be around Juno's age, was currently standing in front of a crouched figure, protecting it from the trio of larger boys, who from what I could see definitely weren't in college yet.

"Stupid kid, this isn't one of your friends! That thing is an abomination, something we need to teach a lesson it'll never forget!"

Quickly, the kid talking knocked the human child down, causing a yelp of pain as they landed awkwardly on their arm. I was already walking towards the group when the leader formed a fist in his hands, rushing it towards the monster lying on the ground-

-only for it to be caught in my hand.

"Oh? And what lesson may that be boys? Is it, perhaps, that it's alright to beat up kids in alleyways during broad daylight?" I let go of his hand, letting it fall as I pushed, knocking him into the ground in surprise. "Or maybe it's that you should let people stomp. all. over. you." With each word, I slammed my foot down onto his stomach before going even lower, my last kick causing an agonizing yelp of pain to emerge. I almost felt sorry for him, after all I had put my heels back on for this. But then I took another glance at the kids I was currently standing up for, and the guilt vanished almost immediately.

"You bitch!"

I was caught off guard as a pair of hands grabbed me from behind, apparently the others had decided to help out. The one in front of me, a blonde, swung his hands, hitting me once, twice, three times before I kicked up, hitting once again dead center as he crumpled down onto the ground. I rolled to the ground, taking the last guy with me and spinning so that I landed on top of them all, like one massive dogpile.

I winced at the stinging sensation in my own torso, apparently I had missed the knife in his hands, now covered in my own blood.

Shrugging the pain away, I stood up, making my best impression of a badass. I tried to put as much dark, menacing aggression into my voice as I could. "If you don't want the police to get called, I  _ strongly _ suggest that you get your shameful asses out of my sight."

Luckily, my ruse worked, as before I could even stand the three teenagers were gone.

 

Waiting until I couldn't hear the sounds of their footsteps before quickly turning around, crouching down and inspecting the child for any harm. Almost immediately, my attention focused on their arm, which was currently clutched tightly to the child's torso.

"Hey, hey. I'm not gonna hurt you, but I'm going to need to see your arm, alright?"

This caused the child to violently shake their head, scooting over to the monster child beside them instead. Looking over, I could see why they were so determined on helping him first, as there were multiple cuts and bruises and...well, the amount of blood clotting his fur didn't really help me see what exactly had happened, it barely let me see the yellow-ish color of his sleeveless sweater.

Carefully, I took off my heels, leaving them on the ground as I bent over and hoisted the armless monster onto my back, luck being on my side as he was just a tad bit smaller than myself. "Hey kid, you both need medical attention, and I can't help you much in this dirty alley. So, I'm going to take you to my house, alright? We can call your parents and tell them where you are when we get there, but I'm going to need you to stand. Can you do that?"

Nodding, he (or is it she? I'll have to ask later) stood up, their arm in one hand as I quickly began to jog, the monster kid whining as I jostled him. "Sorry, sorry." I kept on repeating apologies for every whine emitted, until we eventually came to the edge of town, a ragged dirt trail leading up a short ways to an equally-trashy wooden house.

As we approached, the front door was suddenly yanked open, and I could hear Gem yell something, alarm evident as he sprinted towards me. He began to bombard me with questions, demanding to know what happened before I interrupted him.

 

" _ Gem! _ Tell Juno to grab the first aid kit - the big one, not the little one. Then you're going to get the kid next to me a seat, a blanket, and a nice warm cup of tea." Nodding, I watched as my brother, for once, listened to me, guiding the poor kid into the house while I quickly rushed into the empty bedroom next to mine. Gently setting the yellow creature onto the bed, Juno suddenly appeared, handing me the first aid kit and a wet towel before she averted her gaze at the floor.

 

I softly scolded myself for making her see this, but at least I won't need her for anything else.

 

"Juno, hey, I need you to listen." I distracted her from the bloody mess, knowing how uneasy she gets about these type of things. "The kid Gem brought in, I'm pretty sure their dominant arm's useless for the moment. So, you're going to have to ask them for their parent's phone number, alright? And when you dial the call, tell the kid that I'll need to speak with their mom or dad too, 'kay? Can you do that?" 

 

A quiet murmur of agreement, and Juno practically rushed out of the room, leaving me alone with the whimpering child. Grabbing the wet towel, I removed his shirt, apologizing even more at the wincing caused while doing so.

 

I began to scrub gently at his fur, the drying blood thankfully coming off easier than expected, though the somewhat rough texture caused at least some discomfort for the monster, I'm sure.

 

"Hey kiddo, you're gonna be fine, alright? Your friend's parents are coming right now, I promise. But for now, I'm just gonna keep cleaning your injuries, alright?" Not pausing for confirmation, I continued scrubbing, gently picking at the clotted fur until Gem walked in, phone in hand.

"It's dialing."

"Awesome, here." The wet towel was traded for a dry phone. "Clean the blood off, make sure his wounds get cleaned but be gentle, 'kay?"

Putting the phone up to my ear, I waited for a few seconds, the monotone beeps of the call going through nearly driving me insane before a voice answered.

 

 

 

_ "Frisk?" _


	2. Like

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary, what summary? 
> 
> Perhaps, one day, the author will start using the part of her mind which will allow for such things to exist.
> 
> But that day...is not today.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so first off, I'm SUPER SORRY for not updating this.
> 
> All I will say is that I had some personal things that kept me away from my computer (and also an english summer assignment, and some chemistry prep for next year, and-).
> 
> Anyhow, I also somehow managed to catch my little brother delete the entire word document I had saved for this on my personal computer. So I had to go off of what I wrote on here for re-writing the first chapter and the rest of the story that I'm currently working on.
> 
> ANYHOW, here's chapter two! Hope you enjoy, and please comment any questions/concerns you may have. Also, if any of you see any mistakes or have an idea of what I could do better, please comment as well!
> 
>  
> 
> A N Y H O W , happy reading!

_"Frisk?"_

 

 

 

Frisk must be the kid with the hurt arm, I assumed, quickly answering the voice.

"Hi! Terribly sorry, but I'm not Frisk, actually I found them and their friend getting beat up by a group of thugs. Nobody's dead, but I think Frisk's arm's broken and the other-" My voice hitched a little, and I thought about what I saw. "...It's pretty bad, the little fella seemed to take most of the damage out of the two."

"Where are you?" The voice was deep, menacing, probably would've scared me had I not been already high strung as much as I already was. I told him my address. As soon as I finished, I started to second guess what exactly I got into. After all, most people wouldn't just give their address out to random strangers, now, would they?

"Alright, hold on."

The phone hung up, and I handed it back to Frisk, just as the door knocked. Walking over to it, I went to open it. Must be the pizza guy-

"Heh, I didn't know the lady on the phone had a little sister."

-oh, he did not just say that.

And with that said, I already didn't like the guy. Or should I say, skeleton. A bit taller than myself, he wore a blue hoodie, basketball shorts, and...slippers? Shaking my head at the distraction, I gave a mild glare. "Actually, it was  _ me  _ you were talking to. And it's not rude to assume that you're Frisk's caretaker, skele-man?"

"Nah, their mom's at work, I'm just the part time uncle." A shrug glided off of the skeleton's shoulders, "the name's Sans, by the way." Moving to the side, I let him in, quickly shutting the door behind me. 

****

"Frisk's in the living room with my sister, and the other kid's-"

"--his name's MK."

_ Let me guess, short for monster kid? _

In a different situation, I'd probably laugh at my own inner sarcasm. Instead I just gave the skeleton an apologetic smile. "Sorry. MK's in the guest bedroom, down the hallway, my brother is cleaning his wounds as we speak."

I climbed the counter as I was talking, grabbing five glasses and precariously holding them while I climbed back down. Setting them down, I quickly went to fill them all up with water, my hands shaking a bit during the action. 

Great, apparently now's the time for my stress to catch up with me. 

Ignoring it, I approached Sans, a now-filled glass of water being graciously taken out of my hands before I made my rounds, giving Juno two and almost threatening her to take a drink before she made herself sick.

Sans was, at the moment, trying to see what exactly was wrong with Frisk's arm, so that left him with the two girls whilst I went to see Gem and MK. "How is he?" Giving my brother one glass, I set the other on the small nightstand beside the bed.

"I managed to get most of the excess blood off and clean his wounds, but this guy's-"

"Oh, apparently his name's MK, the kid outside is Frisk."

"Right, so MK's torso here is mostly covered in bruises, but there's a few deep cuts that need to be bandaged up I think." Standing, Gem moved aside to let me see just how bad the damage was. With all the blood gone, I could see what he was talking about, gently spreading the yellow fur apart with my hand in order to see the purple and pale green splotches surrounding the sliced bits of flesh.

"Awesome, I'll take it from here."

"Are you sure, sis'? You don't look so awesome yoursel-"

"I said I'll take it from here, Gem, so  _ go help Juno _ ." Gem stood up, giving me a look that let me know the only reason he dropped this subject now was because we had guests. I sighed at his exit, knowing that I'll have to deal with him later.

****

Taking the bandages out and applying some antiseptic cream, I began the process of wrapping up the kid's torso, making sure to make it tight enough not to fall off, and yet also stopping just short of it being unbearably tight for the kid. After most of his torso was protected in sterile fabric, I cut the excess bandage off, placing the smaller roll back into the first aid kit-

"ya' seem to be pretty skilled with those, huh?"

I flinched at the sound of the unfamiliar voice, cold air whipping into my throat faster than meant. His face softened (or at least, I'm going to call it a face, though in reality it's just a severely un-anatomical skull that seems to magically move around on it's own). 

****

"sorry, didn't mean to scare ya'..."

"It's fine, I'm just not used to other people being here." Waving him off, I fiddled with my hands for a second, a dull throb of pain reminding me of my own injury.

"what's-" He stopped, clearly thinking for a second before switching gears. Â "how's MK?"

"Well, apart from the severe bruising and probable swelling covering his torso, and the handful of deeper cuts? I applied an antiseptic cream, not to mention Gem cleaned his wounds, so there shouldn't be any infection to deal with. Honestly, you should've seen him earlier, there was so much -"

"yep." An interrupting hand set itself on my shoulder. "ya' see, I was thinking 'bout that. 'm glad ya' found the kiddos when ya' did, and it's not that I don't believe ya' when ya' said ya' just  _ found  _ them, but I gotta ask-" I hissed a little at the immense pressure being placed, his grip somehow becoming an iron vice in an instant.

**"- h o w  l o n g  d i d  y a'  j u s t  s t a n d  o n  t h e  s i d e l i n e s  w a t c h i n g ?"**

His tone was practically pitch black now, anger and doubt clearly heard in his tone, while his grip was becoming nearly unbearable now. I felt myself being forced to face him, the trembling of my hands out of my control now. His eyes were void of anything at all, as if they were staring right into my soul.

Somehow, for the second time today, I managed to sound ten times more calm than I actually felt. 

"You know, that's not the question I'd be asking in your shoes."

"oh?" A brief laugh, although he sounded anything but amused. "and what should I be asking?"

"If I were you, I'd ask how I managed to even find the kids in the first place. Or maybe I'd ask why I was even there?" Before he could respond, I continued, not wanting to lose this momentum I had.

"If you must know, I had just landed a job at Grillby's, so if  _ that  _ doesn't tell you anything, then let me spell it out. I don't give a shit whether you guys are monsters are not. If it makes you feel any better, you probably won't have to see me ever again after this. But like hell will I let you claim that I just stood aside and let those - " My lungs burned, reminding me to breathe. Taking a shaky breathe, I finished my sentence.

"- those  _ bastards  _ take out their racist hate on a kid. I may be horrible, but at the very least I don't take pleasure in seeing others suffer." The last bit came out much softer, taking both me and Sans by surprise apparently, as now his grip had loosened considerably - or at least enough for me to shrug it off. I turned back around, staring at the kid in silence as I tried to calm myself down. The rhythmic pattern of the smaller monster's breaths grounded me, and I matched my own to his.

In...out.

In...out.

In-

"hey kiddo-"

"Not a kid." The reply was short, as it should be seeing as I only spared a breath to reply. The shaking had stopped now, thankfully, and I tapped my hands in triplets for the second time today.

****

"Whatever ya' say. just wanna make it clear that I don't like ya'." A harsh laugh escaped my lips.

****

"Of course you don't, the first words I said to you were that your people are hurt after all... Speaking of which, how's Frisk?" Deciding I was calm enough to deal with this, I turned around.

****

"Well, their arm's broken- like ya' said, but their mom'll fix them up when they get home." Confused, I tilted my neck- only for a sudden sharp pain in my side forcing me to inhale sharply. Trying to move away before the questions started, Sans grabbed my wrist, bony phalanges digging into my skin.

"wasn't finished yet kiddo. Are ya'-"

"Octavia, the pizza man's here!"

****

Juno's voice echoed into the room, interrupting whatever Sans was going to say. I yanked my arm away, glaring at him. "Well, Skele-man, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pay." Quickly, I dashed from the room, grabbing the twenty that Gem so graciously handed me before opening the door.

****

"One large Pepperoni, one large vegetarian, and a small cheese. That'll be $24.96 , please."

Sighing, I had to go fish the extra five out of a drawer, handing the man the money and taking the pizzas. Shutting the door behind me, I gave a pointed look at Gem. "And why the hell did you buy a small pizza, exactly? I thought you guys didn't like cheese."

"We don't, but I haven't seen you eat anything for a while, so...surprise!" Juno cheered, gaining yet another sigh from me. "But guys, you really shouldn't of-"

A small tap interrupted me, and turning I saw Frisk standing there, Sans not too far behind. Seeing their arm still being held to their chest, I let out a small â€œoh.â€� Without warning, I rushed back to my room, soon enough returning with one of my older shirts. "Here, let's give your other arm a break, 'kay?"

A loud tearing sound filled the room as I ripped my shirt in half, tying the two strips together and creating a makeshift sling for the young teen in front of me. Carefully placing their arm inside, I took a step back to admire my work. "There we go. Is it snug?" I chuckled as they nodded fervently, "Good, now I need to go change out of these horrible clothes, so I'll be right back." I rushed into the hallway, making sure to grab the first aid kit from the room where MK was sleeping before heading into my room, the wooden floor welcoming me as I shut the door behind me. Quickly stripping, I stepped up to the mirror on the wall to see just how bad the asshole in the alley caught me.

The wound itself couldn't be more than a couple of inches in length, though the downside of it was that it was pretty deep. Not deep enough for stitches, but deep enough for it to still be bleeding. Honestly, it was a good thing I had my vest on, otherwise the others would've noticed right away. I sighed, knowing it was going to sting like hell as I soaked a cottonball in hydrogen peroxide.

It took more effort than I'd like to admit to not cry out when the cotton ball hit the open wound, white bubbles grotesquely popping up, burning any chance of infection away. A knock on my door distracted me for a moment, "Hey Oct' , the skele-man called his brother and told him he was gonna stay here for a bit. You almost done in there?"

Concern filled my sister's voice, and for a second I thought she was going to try and open the door. "Y-yeah Juno, I'm fine! Go eat your lunch." I was almost positive she caught onto the catch in my voice- but if she did she didn't show any sign of it, instead giving a nonchalant 'okay' and abandoning her post behind my door. I waited until I couldn't hear the footsteps anymore before continuing, grabbing some bandages and quickly covering the gash, watching to see if I needed more before deciding against it, hurriedly changing into a pair of black leggings and a maroon shirt that had the feel of a loose, thin sweatshirt, covering everything from my mid-thighs to the bottom of my collarbone, although that still managed to peek out from the wide boat-neck cut of the top.

I returned to the kitchen, hoping to whatever higher deity out there that the kitchen wasn't-

_ Slap. _

I stared at the slice of pizza currently sliding its way down the wall next to my face, eyeballing its red marinara trail as it continued to the floor. Turning my attention back to the source of the mess, I very nearly face-palmed at the sight before me.

****

"AHHH, YOU MEAT-LOVING TRAITOR!"

"AT LEAST MY PROTEIN IS EASY TO FIND!"

"OH YEAH?" Juno stuck her tongue out, before throwing a very large mushroom slice at her brother. "WELL AT LEAST I HAVE A HIGHER METABOLISM!"

"THE ONLY REASON THAT MAY BE TRUE IS BECAUSE YOUR FOOD MAKES YOU GASSY!"

"MY FOOD DOES NOT MAKE ME GASSY, YOU....YOU..." Juno stopped, and for a second I thought that Gem won this stupid argument again.

But only for a second.

"YOU COLONEL SANDERS WORSHIPPER!"

"I DO  _ NOT  _ WORSHIP-"

 

I slammed my hands onto the table, interrupting the two's bickering as my voice echoed, an eerie calm coming across. " **Enough** ." Almost in sync, the duo apologized, and I waved my hands at them, looking to see what damage was done. Practically all of the vegetarian pizza was covered in some sort of brown sauce, no doubt from Gem sabotaging it. Likewise, Juno probably tried to get revenge, as most of the pepperoni was lying across the table, some of it on the floor.

But, thankfully, nobody touched the cheese, which at the moment was all I really cared about.

Sighing, I turned to our guests, pinching the bridge of my nose at the forming of a familiar headache. 

****

"Well, Hopefully you guys like cheese, because thanks to those two that's all there is now, sorry." Quickly, I moved over to the kitchen, grabbing five plates and setting a slice on each. Looking at the last slice, I opted to place it on Frisk's plate. The kid needs the strength anyways, right? Coming back out, I passed out the plates, the remaining one being placed onto the table for MK on the off-chance of him waking up.

"Hey, weren't you going to eat-"

I shook my head at my sister as our brother lightly elbowed her in the side. "Nah, I'm not that hungry right now, but maybe later, 'kay?" Not really waiting for their replies, I left the room, instead opting to go face-plant myself right onto our loving sofa, the stench quickly bringing up old memories in the back of my mind.

Though I should've suspected that my undead guest would follow me, my body gave a mild flinch when all of a sudden a divot was formed in the space next to mine, the weight of the seemingly weightless guy holding it's shape.

"hey."

Sitting up, I decided that it would be easier for me to reply, instead of ignoring him like an asshole. "Hey, what's up?"

Almost immediately, a plate of pizza was being set on my lap. "'m not very hungry, ya' see, so here ya' go." Although the gesture was sweet, I politely declined, handing it back to the skeleton. "Thanks, but if I eat now it'll probably come back up later, to be honest." Upon seeing his blank look, I continued. "I don't deal with stress that easily, you see."

"Ah, alright." Taking the plate back, Sans just set it down on his lap. "Thanks for the food."

"Ah, I would've bought more if I was expecting you guys, but..." I trailed off, Sans agreement leaving us to a bit of an awkward silence, whilst my siblings happily chatted away with Frisk in the kitchen. Or, well, chatted  _ to  _ them, from the sound of it.

****

A few minutes later, there was another knock at the front door. I stood up to get it, and Sans stood up as well. "Hey, you might want me to-"

I ignored whatever he was going to say, instead walking over and opening it.

 

 

"HUMAN!"


	3. These

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *The situation escalates quicker than handled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so I'm not even gonna /try/ and make excuses for why this hasn't been updated. BUT, in my defense, I've been dealing with a lot of crazy stuff this past year, so uh...yeah. I'll try my best to make it up to you guys with a burst of chapters--but I can't promise a regular update schedule anymore, sorry guys. 
> 
> On another note, I've adopted a pseudonym that makes me feel like I've started on a fresh page--and edited the previous chapters a little bit. Nothing /too/ huge, just cleaning up sloppy writing from the past me. Hopefully it's a bit easier to read now (it was painful for me, not gonna lie x.x)?

"HUMAN!"

Oh mother of all holy things made with waffle mix! I stared at the monster in front of me, not sure whether I should be intimidated, confused, or a mixture of both. Perhaps it was the long purple wig catching me off guard, but if it wasn’t enough to know that the Skele-man was already half a foot taller than me, then what the hell is with this guy?!? He’s probably double, no, triple my height!!! And if that isn’t intimidating enough, the guy’s wearing ARMOR?!?! “HUMAN, WHILE I AM HONORED THAT YOU APPEAR TO BE FLABBER-GASTED BY THE GREATNESS OF THE GREAT PAPYRUS, IT APPEARS THAT YOU ARE BLOCKING THE WAY INSIDE.”

“...sorry.” Moving aside, I watched as the tall(!) skeleton walked past me, right up to the table where the kids were. “HUMAN FRISK!!!  IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT THE GREAT PAPYRUS HEALS YOUR ARM AT ONCE!” And so, without further ado, ‘Papyrus’ unsheathed a glove, hand suddenly glowing orange as he gently removes Frisk’s arm from my makeshift. I took a few steps forward--only to be stopped by another arm.

“watch and learn, kiddo. bro’s a pro at this.” I looked at Sans, before shrugging and looking back to Frisk...who was now swinging their previously broken arm with a huge grin on their face.

“Huh.”

“Whoa! Mr. Papyrus, that was amazing!” Juno was the first to comment on the whole scenario, eyes wide as Frisk moves their hands around...oh wait, that’s sign language, isn’t it? Explains why they weren’t talking earlier…

“WOWIE, THANK YOU SMALLER HUMAN! ARE YOU TWO FRISK’S NEW FRIENDS?” Papyrus leaned down, before thinking better of it and sitting himself.

“Ah, not really. Oct’ just sorta showed up with them.” Gem fiddled with his hands as he spoke, catching my attention while the taller skeleton turned to me.

“HUMAN ‘OCT’?”

“That would be short for Octavia.” I gave a small wave. “Sunset hair is Gem, and cotton candy is Juno.”

“AND YOU ARE THEIR MOTHER?”

...well, at least that response was better than assuming I’m another child.

“stars, bro! You can’t just--” Sans couldn’t help himself, as he broke into a snickering pile of bones--as did Juno and Gem.

“...no, Mr. Papyrus. I’d say I was their big sister.” I deadpanned, trying to look forgiving at the skeleton in front of me--after all, he clearly didn’t mean any harm by it, right?

“OH! AND WHERE WOULD YOUR MOTHER AND FATHER BE, BY ANY CHANCE?”

 

..the room became awfully quiet after that statement.

 

“Well, mom died after giving birth to the twins. As for dad...he works an awful lot, that’s all.”

It wasn’t necessarily a full lie, but like hell was I about to explain our…”family” situation.

“OH DEAR! I HOPE I HAVEN’T OFFENDED YOU, HUMAN OCTAVIA!”

Suddenly, Papyrus was striding towards me, ignoring my protests as he grasps my hand. Staring at my hands, it seemed that the skeleton was going to say something--but he hesitated.

“HUMAN OCTAVIA, ARE YOU BY ANY CHANCE...INJURED?”

I yank out of his grasp, wincing at the unexpected bolt of pain shoots up my side resulting from my harsh movements. Both skeletons stare while the twins are suddenly up and at it.

“Oct’, you got hurt?”

“--and you didn’t tell us?”

“Is it serious, do you need to go to the hospital--”

“No! I’m fine, guys.” I tried to walk away, until a certain skele-man decided to grab my hand.

“...you know, all you had ta do is ask.” I scoffed at him, “It’s nothing, I’ve dealt with worse than a little stab wound. The asshole didn’t even--”

“STAB WOUND!”

“OH HOLY MOTHER OF WAFFLES, OCT’S GONNA DIEEEEE!!”

Whilst the twins decided to panic and flip out, I was jerked forward, causing me to cry out.

“thought so. Bro, right side.”

 

Lifting the side of my shirt, Papyrus put a glowing hand over the bandages, only to be slapped away by me.

 

 **“Don’t. Touch. Me.** ”

 

Forcefully, I yanked my hand out San’s grip, stalking off to my room despite the abrupt protests of my siblings. How dare these skeletons stick their nose up in your business, acting like they actually care of all things, and then try to force their ‘help’ where it isn’t wanted? It was disgusting. “heh, funny to see you here.” And, of course, Sans was on my bed.

“Get out of my room, skele-man.” I growled at him, taking an intimidating few steps toward him.

“nah, your bed’s pretty comfy. think I’ll take a nap here.” Laying back, Sans gave you a shit-eating grin--much to your chagrin.

“ya’ know, if you didn’t get so defensive when cornered, I’d say you were a pretty chill person. Heck, you even managed to give the cold shoulder to a stab wound.”

“...Are you seriously making fucking puns now? After that stunt?”

“whoa, kiddo, what’s the big deal? we were only tryin’ to help---”

“I DON’T NEED YOUR GODDAMN HELP!” I was outright livid now, my heart racing as my side burned, and my head pounded. “ALL I WANTED WAS TO MAKE SURE THE KIDS DIDN’T DIE, AND YOU’RE WANTING TO HELP ME?!? THAT’S SUCH BULLSHIT, I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU! ALL YOU WANT IS TO MAKE SURE I NEVER TOUCH YOUR PEOPLE AGAIN, YOU IDIOT! DO YOU SERIOUSLY THINK THAT I’M THAT STUPID AS TO LET YOU--”

 

“Oct’.”

 

Suddenly, I found my face shoved into Gem’s shirt--tensing almost immediately and nearly shoving him off of me.

“It’s all good, remember? They’re monsters, so all that kindness and shit is in their biology.”

“Wa--watch your fucking language, Gem.” I hid my face further into his shirt, embarrassment creeping into my mind as the sudden rage began to exit my system. It was stupid, yelling like that at somebody I just met, wasn’t it? He probably wanted nothing more than to take his kids and leave.

 

“Stars, your sister’s got a bit of trust issues, huh?”

_He was still here?_

“Yep, though usually they aren’t this bad…” Tightening his grip on me, Gem’s worry was obviously worsening. Soon enough, he was leading me over to the bed, setting me down behind him as he continued to talk to the skeleton.

“Well, she’s also high-strung due to working all the time, so please don’t take it personal. It’s not really you’re fau--”

“yep, I get it now kid. guess I should’ve asked beforehand.”

 

An awkward silence fell over the room, before my brother shuffled nervously.

 

“Could you bring your brother in here, now? I’m sure Oct’ here would really appreciate the help now. She’s not normally so aggressive to strangers…”

“...sure thing, kid.”

 

As soon as I heard the footsteps of Sans leave the room, I looked up to see Gem’s face. A glare caught me off guard.

 

“God, Oct’, you can’t keep this up. It’s killing you.”

“Shut up Gem, it pays the bills.”

“At what price though? Dammit Oct’--”

“Watch your fucking language, Gem.”

“Now you can shut up, hypocrite... Hey, so listen. I was talking to Papyrus, and by the looks of it the skeletons are looking for a place to live--preferably a place that doesn’t deny them because they’re monsters. So, I was thinking--”

 

“Absolutely not.”

“But, we have the room--”

“ _Gem_. I slapped his brother, and broke down yelling at the skele-man. Do you really think they’ll accept an offer to live with us?”

 

“...well, that depends. are ya’ offering?”

 

I quickly turned to face the skeleton brothers, the blood running to my face as I quickly decided to hide my shame by burrowing into my brother's shirt again, mumbling into the fabric at the entire situation.

 

 

“...shit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...Annnnd this chapter is noticeably shorter than the others, I know. But, I figured that this was one of the best places to transition into the next chapter--sooooo, yep.
> 
> Also, fun fact--I still love questions and feedback, so if you want to...go ahead and COMMENT DOWN BELOW!!
> 
> =)


	4. Make

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *You manage to not only snag Sans' phone number, but also threaten Papyrus' innocence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW.
> 
> Never underestimate the power of insomnia, showers, and a laptop. NEVER.

“WOWIE HUMAN OCTAVIA. I NEVER REALIZED MY GREATNESS COULD MAKE SUCH AN IMPRESSION ON YOU, THAT YOU WOULD WANT ME TO LIVE WITH YOU!!!” 

 

Papyrus sounded as happy as a child did when it’s Christmas...you couldn’t fight easily against such innocence. Turning to address him, you couldn’t help but stare at your hands when going to speak.

 

“Ah, but I’m not sure you’d enjoy living here, Papyrus. After all, I’m not around often--so it’d probably feel like you’d be babysitting the twins more than actually living here.”

“HUMAN OCTAVIA, ARE YOU IMPLYING THAT I WOULD NOT ENJOY THE COMPANY OF YOUR SIBLINGS?”

“Umm, maybe?”

“I DO NOT BELIEVE SO. BY THE INTERACTIONS I’VE HAD WITH THEM SO FAR, YOUR SISTER SEEMS TO LOVE A PUZZLE GAME CALLED “JENGA”. AS FOR YOUR BROTHER, HE…”

 

Papyrus stopped for a moment, apparently thinking carefully about what he was going to say.

 

“HUMAN GEM, YOU SEEM TO ENJOY STYLE. I DO THINK YOU WOULD ENJOY WATCHING THE MTT CHANNEL.”

 

Ah, so he didn’t want to talk about Gem like he wasn’t there?

God, that was just a super sweet blow to my heart.

I’m not sure if I could refuse such a sweetheart anymore.

 

“Thank you Papyrus. I’ll make sure to take that into consideration if we ever get cable.”

 

_Dammit Gem, you’re not helping me at all._

Still though, with my pride as a big sister on the line, I have to try to thwart my brother’s plans!

 

“Ah, Gem brings up a good point. We don’t have a lot to offer here for entertainment, and going outside in this neighborhood is more trouble than it’s worth. Plus, uh, we don’t have the best accommodations in terms of furniture. The rooms you would be staying in are extremely dusty, and--oh shit.”

 

Seeing the sudden look of distress on Sans face, I backpedaled _furiously_.

 

“I mean, dusty as in dirty! Not, you know, monster-killer-dusty! I, uh, don’t do that--and neither does Gem and Juno!!! God, I’m so sorry!”

 

If I thought my face was red before, I’m positive it was one with the tomatoes by now. Meanwhile, Gem was shaking as he tried to conceal his laughter, earning a half-hearted palm on the chest from me.

 

“It’s not funny, dammit!”

“No, it’s not. Your reaction, on the other hand, is priceless.”

 

I turned to Papyrus, expecting to see some sort of mortification--THAT DOESN'T MEAN GODDAMN _STARS_!!!

 

“HUMAN, I WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO CLEAN OUR HYPOTHETICAL ROOMS!!!”

“oh stars, you’ve done it now kids.” Sans looked exasperated. “bro here loves to clean.”

“But, uh, what about--”

“kiddo, are you really _that_ against the idea of me and my brother living here? It’s not like we’d be free-loading off of you guys, we’d pay our portion of rent.”

 

I wanted to say yes so badly, to say that it was just dangerous to have these skeletons around. But, the truth is…

 

“No, I don't actually mind...the kids live here more than me anyhow, so if they’re both fine with you two living here--”

“I most certainly am.”

“Me too!”

 

When did Juno plop down next to me?

 

“I’m sure it’ll be ten times more fun with you guys here now! And since you’re helping pay the rent now, Oct’ can quit one of her jobs and--!”

“Absolutely not, Juno. My work schedule will not change, and the skeletons will _not_ be paying for rent.”

“Oct’, what the hell--!”

“ _Language_. I mean it, guys. It’s not a charity case, it’s simply payment for the skeletons keeping an eye...or, well, an _eyesocket_ out for you two. They both are decent people, and I couldn’t stand them paying me on top of it all.”

 

Glancing at the clock, I swore as I rushed to grab my uniform. _Three hours, already?_

 

“We’ll continue this discussion later, for now I’m going to assume Papyrus and Sans will take care of MK and Frisk?”

 

At the nod of the skeletons, I made like a madwoman and rushed to the bathroom.

Changing out of the comfortable outfit, I took a minute to re-wrap the bandages, grimacing as I tightened them more than necessary. The black skirt I slipped on didn’t leave much to the imagination, much to my distaste.

_I guess that’s what happens when you were hired at a restaurant made more for the sex appeal and booze, rather than the food._

The light gray top was purposefully knotted to make it display my stomach--thank god for all the walking around you did. Unfortunately, it was a little bit baggy due to my lack of...endowments in that area.

 

Still though, I looked pretty good in the outfit--and I didn’t even have to worry about covering up the wound due to the bandages!

_Hell, I’d say they just added another layer of mystery to my sexiness~_

 

Undoing the beautiful twist, I let my hair fall loose--the waves exaggerated from keeping it twisted causing my hair to flow like a waterfall down to my hips. Hurrying, I fixed up my makeup. Seeing as I now needed to get the skeletons a house-warming gift, I also needed to start laying on the tips. So, I took the rest of my time applying makeup--ending up with an absolutely gorgeous smoky eye. Seriously, if I wasn’t so packed for time, I’d be extremely impressed with myself. To top it off, I applied a pale pink lipstick, stowing it away in my bag whilst grabbing a pair of glasses. Well, the glasses were fake--but Roxanne said it was the final touch to give me what she described as “sexy good girl vibes”.

 

Walking out with passion, I shouted to Gem through the house.

 

“GEM! Where’s my HAT!”

“IT’S ON THE COUNTER, COME OUT AND GET IT!”

“THANK YOU!”

 

Sauntering over to him, I gave my brother the best sexy-eyes I could, fluttering them softly...which, unfortunately, only resulted in an eye roll from him.

 

“While I do acknowledge the sexy allure of my elder sister,I hate the idea that you’re dressing like this for money.”

“Aww, thanks bro. Just remember that you have a twin sister that might get jealous if we were to reveal our _true_ relationship.”

 

Sticking my tongue out and winking seductively, I laughed as Gem sputtered--his face nearly turning as bright as his hair...which of course I took the opportunity to ruffle my hands through.

The laughing stopped abruptly, however, when he handed me my boots--which were most definitely the worst part of the entire uniform.

 

Over-the-knee, white, leather, _platform boots_. They were _fuck-ing horrible_ , especially when you had to work the night shift. _God_ , I hated them...but, at least they matched the hat, somewhat.

A plain black top hat, each waitress was supposed to get creative and “customize” the accessory however they wished, and then customers get the option to pick which waitress they want to serve them based on their hats--hence the reason why the place is called “The Hat”. Mine just happened to have all five of the soul gems from _Puella Magi Madoka Magica_ as the main feature. Roxanne got them as a set--along with a matching set of rings that I made sure to wear whenever I had a shift at The Hat. All the gems were held in little gold cage-things, and the single matching chain connecting them all was hanging from a pair..of...skeleton hands.

 

_Shit, maybe I can get out before they see?_

 

Quickly lacing up my boots the rest of the way, I had Gem help me pin the hat to my head. After confirming it to be secure enough, I smooched Gem on the cheek, laughing at him as I bolted out the door, purse in one hand, and the other hand holding a phone which proceeded to be shoved into said purse.

In my hurry, I almost failed to notice the skeleton driving the red sports car up my driveway. Walking directly past it, I started picking up the pace a little bit--only for a hand to grab my arm.

 

“wait a sec, Oct’.”

 

I turned around, giving Sans an eyebrow. Since when has he been calling me that?

 

“where’re you going, dressed like... _that_?”

 

...I couldn’t tell if I should be offended or laughing at the skeleton, as he started to glow a shade of...blue?

 

“I work at The Hat, if the hat didn’t tell you anything.”

 

Pointing to my head, I could see the gears work in his head.

 

“you’re trying to get tips?”

“Yep. And, speaking of which, I should probably be going--”

“i can’t just let you go walking through this type of neighborhood dressed like _that_ , Oct’!”

“Oh my god, not you too Sans!”

 

I rolled my eyes--he was acting just like Gem! I'm a grown adult, so that makes using my feminine aspects to my advantage was totally fair!!!

 

“Listen, why don’t you give me your number, and I’ll text you when I get there?”

“...whatever kid, but we’ll be talking about this later.” 

 

_There's the nickname._

 

I hand him my phone, “Yeah, yeah. I get it.”

 

The minute he hands my phone back, I put it back in my purse.... 

“See ya!”

 

Annnnd I’m gone, fist-pumping at his lack of perception. He didn't even notice the skeleton hands!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No kidding guys, but I would wear the ever-loving /heck/ out of the hat Octavia has--uniform or not!!
> 
> Anyways--hopefully next chapter will have a bit of Sans' perspectives at home with the kids...and also some possibly (PG-13?) saucy time at "The Hat".
> 
> ...Which, if you didn't notice, is basically my parody on Hooter's. (Note: Never have been to Hooters, and most definitely have nothing against the franchise. I just know that it was either Octavia getting tips for being sexy or...well, I don't know, cute?)
> 
> PLUSSSS, GUEST STARS COMING UP NEXT CHAPTER!!! MAKE A GUESS! Or not, your choice...
> 
> Anyways, please comment below if you have questions/feedback/possible-plot-bunnies/tropes-I-should-include/STUFFFFFFF!!! (^.^)


	5. Nights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *...you think there was once a summary here, but it's all scribbled out as the author couldn't make up her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprisingly, I had WAYYYYY more fun writing this chapter than I thought I would.
> 
> (Spoiler: Gem's a cinnamon bunny, and I love him oh-so-dearly for it.)

* * *

 

**~*~ S A N S ~*~**

 

* * *

 

“See ya!”

...i gave a sigh as our new ‘landlady’ bolted off, worry-free from whatever predators may be lurking in this neighborhood. but, she was nice enough--if not a little frayed around the edges from all that wear-and-tear she seems to put herself through for the kids.

speaking of which, I should probably head back in and check on them, huh? from the sounds of it, they were sweet, fun-loving teenagers. but, teenagers were still teenagers, nonetheless--and based from what I’ve seen so far, teenagers are just looking for trouble. with this in mind, it’s not the oddest thing to find out that Papyrus has already run off with Juno. my brother seemed awfully excited about that “Jenga” thing the girl mentioned to him earlier, so maybe they wanted to go play it? but, if the Papyrus and the twins were playing Jenga, why was Gem just sitting there on the couch? Not to mention, with the way he was carrying his head in those hands of his...something couldn’t be right.

 

“hey, kid. somethin’ the matter?” lazily plopping down next to him on the couch, consider me surprised when Gem leaned back and looked at me. apparently something was the matter, as the kid looked at me with a shocking amount of impotence.

 

“It’s...nah, nevermind man.”

“..so it’s about your sister? the older one, that is.”

 

He looked at me, confusion written all over his face before finally letting out a sigh. called it. “Yep. Just worried for her, that’s all. She hasn’t really been home since...well, a while now.” i tilted my head, “but, she was here today--”

“I know she was here, that’s not what I meant!” Snapping, Gem immediately apologized afterwards. i dismissed the issue, a lazy wave of my hand motioning him to continue. 

“It’s just... she’s so stressed out all the time now, so she's never taving the time to just, slow down and relax, you know?. I mean, she makes sure we’re taken care of-- always making us laugh, and changing the subject so that we don’t worry about her...but then shit like today happens.” he stopped for a moment, trying to organize his thoughts probably. it gives me time to interject.

 

“whoa, kid. I get that this is really important, but why’re you telling me?”

_i know i wouldn’t go telling a stranger all my family’s problems._

“i mean, it’s not like I don’t care, but we only just met today--and i’m surprised enough that we’ve ended up moving into your place.”

“Ah. Well, Octavia let you into our home, so you’re definitely worth trusting.”

 

the amount of sincerity in those words alone left me speechless, as a smile found its way onto the kid’s face.

 

“what, does she not invite anybody over?”

“...Not really many people to invite over, when it comes to our family.”

“what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well, Octavia kind of dropped any possibility of college to take care of us, so I’d say she only has one or two friends. And, well, considering the places she’s working at, they’re not really friends, you get me?”

“yep, gotcha kid. what about your friends?”

“Homeschooled up until this next year, actually.”

“oh.”

 

Octavia...cared an awful lot about these kiddos, huh? by the looks of it, they cared the same way for her.

“So, what’s the deal with her eating habits?”

“Oh god, don’t even get me started. But, before I _do_ start ranting, there’s a few ground rules you should probably know about Octavia.”

“figured so. whatcha got pal?”

 

with the woman being a ticking stress bomb and all, it was probably good to at least _hear_ what the kid thought I should avoid.

 

“Well, most of it you’ve probably figured out already. For starters, don’t try and ask her about our dad, please. He’s an asshole, let’s leave it at that.”

 

i nodded, tucking that fact away for another day.

 

“Secondly, don’t just grab her out of the blue, okay? Not only will it freak her out, she may or may not get violent--like today, with Papyrus.”

“alright, so no jumping up behind her to scare her. got it.”

“And finally, you can’t force her to accept anything. If you try to...well, let’s say you just don’t want to?”

“kid, are you threatening me?”

“Nope, just figured I’d save you another headache. If you give her time, she’ll come to deal with it.”

 

then, the conversation just stopped. waiting a few moments to see if he had anything else to say, I began to stand--

 

“Oh, Sans? One more thing.”

“mhm?”

“If I ever find out that you or your brother hurt my family…”

 

the kid smiled, a sudden chill falling over the room as I suddenly find my weight's shifted away from him.

 

**“I’ll make sure your dust finds a good place in hell.”**

 

whoa, whoa, what the actual fuck? i get that the kid’s just protecting family and all...but did he have to actually _smile_ while threatening me? talk about creepy...

 

“sure thing kid. but you know, I can’t really say anything against it.”

closing my eyesockets, I grin ear to ear--and it’s almost like I’m in the underground all over again. 

“After all, if anything were to happen to Papyrus…”

i open two abysses and look at the kid.

 

**“ Y o u   g u y s   m i g h t   n o t   e v e n _h a v e_   d u s t   t o   s p r e a d   w h e n   I ’ m   d o n e .”**

 

.   .   .

 

“...man, that’s just plain _terrifying_ , bone-dude!”

instead of backing off like I’d thought he would, the kid bursts into fits of laughter, completely dissipating whatever atmosphere was left. 

 

“heh, you’re not too bad yourself, Sunny.”

as the kid began to laugh even harder at the new nickname, I relaxed.

 

maybe first impressions were overrated. 

* * *

 

**~*~ O C T A V I A  ~*~**

 

* * *

 

I walked into the small staff room, clocking in and putting the purse in the locker--but not before shooting Gem a quick text.

 

_**[  O: Here now, phone’s off.  ]** _

 

True to my word, I shut down the phone, placing it back into the purse and grabbing the familiar notebook before closing the locker. Walking out, the sterile scent of alcohol wafted over to me, causing a small wrinkling in my nose.

 

“Miss Skeleton Souls! Over here!” I flashed my teeth at my first table of the night, recognizing him as one of my regulars. Early thirties, wavy chocolate locks, and a five-o-clock shadow that would leave most girls my age weak at the knees--this guy was no joke. Bowing to him in a mock formality, I shoved Gem’s opinions of him out of my head for the time being.

 

Avoiding every single pervert who walked in here was not going to make me any money.

 

“Ah, nice to see you again Mister Davidson! I’m safe to assume you’d like me to serve you once again?”

“Damn right, Miss!”

 

Oh, he’s already started drinking again. Welp, this’ll be fun.

 

“Alright then, what can I get you?”

* * *

 

“Still here, Mister Davidson?”

I leaned over to his slouched form, completely aware of the two second delay before his eyes met mine. I was already halfway through my shift, the nearby clock telling me I had three more hours to go--unless Chelsea didn’t show up again. That would change it to seven more hours.

 

“Yyyessiree! I think I’ll take something--”

A hand gripped my wrist, causing me to squeak in surprise as I was roughly forced down onto his lap.

“--to go.”

 

Fluttering my eyelashes at him, I let him think he had a chance.

“And what would you like, Mister Davidson? Perhaps, may I recommend just _one more_ bottle of spirit before you go? Our newest shipment is...extra special, or so I’ve been told.”

If I could sucker this guy into a few more drinks, then the boss will definitely let me have half our tips tonight. All he needed to do was think he wasn’t drunk enough to...well, ‘take me out’.

 

Sure, it sucks that I'm basically manipulating this poor man, but business is business. Plus, everybody knows Saturday nights make a _killer_ in tips.

 

“Alright, guess I could take a few more--since my fav’rite waitress persists and all, I guess?” _Gotcha._

“Awww, you’re so sweet!” _Not really, pervert._

“I’ll bring the bottle over as soon as I can!”

 

Wiggling out of his lap, I gave the old guy a wink--before I turned around and started to make my way back. Grabbing a fresh bottle of our most expensive spirit, I noticed the boss raise an eyebrow at me on the other side of the bar counter.

 

“I take it business is good today, Miss Skeleton Souls?”

“Yep, I’ve managed to convince this customer to stay here since the start of my shift.”

“I see...well, don’t let me keep the customer waiting.”

“Yes sir!”

 

One mock salute later, and I was sauntering back to my newly-starred regular, bottle in hand. Setting the fresh cocktail glass down in front of him, I started pouring the drink into it--topping it off and setting the bottle down.

 

“Are you enjoying yourself tonight, Mister Davidson?"

“‘Course I’m, missy! Though, I’d enjoy it a hell of a lot more with some company.”

 

Again, with the grabbing--though this time he didn’t try to force me onto his lap again (thank god).

If it keeps on continuing like this, I might have to watch out for his temper--

 

“HEY, SKELETON HANDS!”

_Ah, my new favorite customer!!!_

 

Giving my infamous ‘apologetic’ grin to mister-grabby-hands, I gently shook my wrist from his grip.

“Sorry Mister Davidson, duty calls? I’ll make sure to come check on you here shortly!”

 

Not waiting for a reply, I practically teleported over to the table I was called to-- only to raise an eyebrow at the pair of monster ladies in front of me. It wasn't very often a monster decided they would brave the alcohol-induced racism for a good night out...but, who am I to judge?

 

“E-e-excuse me f-for the bother, but are those s-s-soul gems on y-your hat?” A yellow dinosaur pointed at your head, brightly and in response I nodded.

 

“Yeah! _Madoka Magica_ is basically my favorite anime of all time!!! Are you a fan too?”

“HELL YEAH PUNK! ME AND ALPHYS LOVE ANIME!!!” The other monster offered up a fist, which of course I couldn’t resist bumping. After that, there was a few moments of silence--that is, until I started up another conversation.

 

“I don’t remember seeing you two here before--is it safe to assume this is your first time ordering at The Hat?”

“A-ah...yeah--”

“IS THAT A PROBLEM, PUNK?” The fish woman narrowed her eyes at me, to which I raised my hands in surrender.

 

“Oh no, I’ve no problems with monsters! It’s just, we don’t follow traditional waiting policies, is all. See the front page on your menus?”

Leaning over, I pointed to the various hats pictured.

“The names underneath each picture indicate what each waitress goes by. For example, I’m ‘Skeleton Souls’, and my specialty is getting you so distractingly drunk you accidentally spend your entire bank account on our spirits~” Winking, I relaxed as the duo laughed at my joke...though seriously, it's half the reason I'm so popular amongst the waitresses.

 

“But, yeah. You basically call over whichever waitress you want, and then just order as you normally would! The waitresses bring you your food and drinks--some more seductively than others, of course. Here at The Hat, we take our competition for tips very seriously...and with that said, would you lovely ladies wish for me to serve you tonight?”

 

“O-of course we w-would like that!”

 

Alphys’ stutter caused the table next to them to turn around, and I rolled my eyes as the customers glared at my newest clients.

 

“Alright, I’ll go ahead and give you a few minutes to order--would the lovely couple like anything to drink?”

“Ice t-tea, please! What about y-you, Undyne?” 

“Your specialty...give me all you got, Madoka Girl! I’M PULLING OUT ALL THE STOPS!!!”

“Al...right? So, the strongest drink we have, got it.” Undyne’s looking really pumped now all of a sudden...was it something I said? 

 

Winking to the duo, I left them to their own devices...

 

...but before that, I decided taking a small detour to the glaring table of men was necessary.

 

“How are you all doing? Comfortable?”

“It’d be a whole lot better if the _trash_ was actually taken _out_ in this dump.”

 

One of the group growled...oh-ho boy, he even pointed to Undyne and Alphys--who thankfully I had my back turned to, as my smile was _sooo_ **not** friendly right now.

 

“Aww, I’m sorry Mister! How about the next time you come in, you call for me? I’m sure I can take out all that _bullshit_ you seem to be made of.”

“What was that, you bitch?!” One of the friends of the asshole in question snapped at me, standing up and easily proceeding to tower over me.

 

“My apologies, sir. Do I need to say in in your native language? I mean, my _idiot-speak‘s_ a bit rusty, but I’m just _sure_ you can understand me if you try hard enou--!”

 

My head suddenly whipped to the side, before turning back to stare at the closed fist left from this guy’s punch--blood suddenly rushing to my left eye in an attempt to start healing the bruise that I’m positive is going to form.

 

“...I’m sorry, sir, did I do something to upset you?”

“DON’T YOU TALK LIKE THAT TO ME, YOU FUCKING B--”

“--Like what, sir? Like you’re the garbage of the earth? You mean, you don’t want me to talk to you the same way you were just talking about my dear customers a moment earlier?”

 

My gaze was frigid as I looked this man in the eye, a smile matching my gaze as I did the final blow.

 

“You know, sir, **there’s a reason I can walk these streets without worry.** It would be fairly wise of you to leave before the end of my shift, so I wouldn’t have to compel myself to... **_demonstrate_** with you and your friends _._ ”

“Y-yeah? Well, maybe we’ll just do that... frigid bitch.”

_**“Watch it, buddy.”** _

 

Slapping a hundred down on the table, I watched as the assholes left the scene of the crime--taking pleasure in the speed they did so. Thankfully, The Hat has had plenty a skirmish within its walls for this to become an actual issue, so I continued my trip to get my new favorite customers’ drinks.

* * *

 

“Alright, my lovely ladies! I have a water for our dear Alphys, and our strongest liquor for the hardcore Undyne!” Upon returning, I noticed Undyne and Alphys’ staring.

 

“Aww, c’mon girls, don’t look at me like that! They were gonna start something the minute you left anyhow, so it’s less of a headache for me anyways!” 

 

“That was...pretty hardcore, punk. Thanks."

"Meh, it was nothi--"

"Uh, don’t take this the wrong way, but why’d you just take the hit like a wimp?!? I’m sure you could have totaled those losers!”

“Ah, that’s easy. I promised my brother I wouldn’t get fired again for fighting the customers.”

“Wait, this is COMMON FOR YOU?!?”

 

Undyne raised her eyebrows, a wide grin growing on her face at my shrug.

 

“Man, THAT IS _AWESOME_!!! I GOTTA BRAG ABOUT YOU TO ALL MY FRIENDS NOW!”

 

Quickly taking the pen out of my hand, she scrawled something on an unused napkin, before reaching up and dropping it into my shirt.

 

“THERE, NOW YOU CAN SAY YOU HAVE A BADASS MONSTER IN YOUR PHONE! FUHUHUHUHU!!”

“O-o-oh! Let me g-give you my number too!” 

 

Repeating the process, Alphys hesitated when she reached, instead opting for handing me the napkin...which I of course shoved down my shirt along with the other one, winking as I did so.

 

I laughed as the two monsters started _glowing_ with embarrassment… 

...or at least, I _was_ laughing, before realizing that the thing they were sputtering at was, actually, the sight of my bra.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GAH, WRITING UNDYNE'S REALLY RELAXING!!! (NOT.)
> 
> Anywho, comments? feedback?
> 
> COMMENT BELOW PLEASE! (^.^ ')


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